RICH ALMOND BUTTER COOKIES
Adapted from “Delicious Asian Sweet Treats”
Yields 35 cookies, depending on the size of cookie cutter

60g unsalted butter, melted
160g cake flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
70g icing sugar
1/4tsp salt
80g ground almonds
3 tbsp peanut oil
1 egg yolk
Glaze: egg yolk + white sesame seeds

METHOD
01. Sift cake flour, baking soda, icing sugar and salt into a mixing bowl.
02. Add ground almonds and mix well.
03. Add 3 tablespoons of peanut oil to melted butter, stir to mix well, and pour into flour mixture.
04. Stir gently with a metal spoon to combine.
05. Add in the yolk, and stir to form a dough.
06. With clean dry hands, pinch out a ball of dough about the size of a your palm.
07. If the dough feels to crumbly, add a few drops of peanut oil if necessary.
08. On a clean counter top, press the dough down with palm to flatten it to a thickness of about 5mm.
09. Cut out cookies with a cookie cutter.
10. The cookies will be too soft to be lifted by fingers.  Use a scraper to lift and transfer cut out cookies to a tray lined with baking paper.
11. Gather the left over dough, and pinch out enough dough from the mixing bowl to form another ball of palm size dough.  Repeat above 4 steps till all dough are used up.
12. Preheat oven to 180C/350F.
13. Brush surface of cookies with egg yolk and sprinkle some sesame seeds over them.
14. Bake for 10-12 minutes, till golden brown.